I am excited to announce a new feature on OptimisticFoodAddict.com. We have added our own personal chef, Tracy Rosenberg Roso. We recognized a need for food addicts to develop and prepare delicious abstinent meals, so Tracy stepped up to provide recipes and cooking videos to our visitors.

Tracy has her own story to tell about her love of food and her food addiction recovery. Here she is in her own words:

“I grew up in a family of cooks on both my mother and father’s side. Some of my most fond memories were of working in the kitchen alongside my grandmothers. I loved cooking great meals and desserts and hearing all the praise from family and friends. As a result, I became a professional private chef. I have been cooking for my clients for over 20 years. I loved creating meals for them and yet hated what it was doing to me in the process. I began to resent and hate cooking. If I wasn’t eating, I was thinking about eating. But because I cook for a living, I was eating all the time. I paid out thousands of dollars for weight loss programs, memberships to gyms that I never went to: phen-phen, and any other product out there that was guaranteed to make me skinny! My gut hurt all the time, and I had IBS. My body and joints hurt all the time. I ended up having four knee surgeries because of the extra weight I was carrying around. Something had to change. I was desperate and had no clue where to turn.

One night while lying in bed feeling bloated and miserable, I was scrolling through FB on my phone. I found the Food Addiction Recovery FB page. My life was forever changed. I didn’t know that there were others out there feeling the way I did. The support was and is amazing. I was given tools to help me along the way. That was when I began my journey into living a food abstinent life.

It hasn’t been easy and there have been some slip ups along the way, but that’s life. Since becoming abstinent from sugar, flour, processed foods, and most glutens, I have lost over 45 pounds. That was May 5, 2014. I am now at a place where I feel comfortable in my skin and clothing. I eat three abstinent, healthy, filling meals a day and drink a ton of water too. I have energy and am very active now. I enjoy hiking and paddle boarding. I am trying new things, and I am excited about living and paying it forward. I still cook for my family, friends, and clients. The difference now is that I love it again. Preparing abstinent meals isn’t just for food addicts, it’s for everyone.

To explore Tracy’s delicious abstinent recipes and cooking videos, visit http://www.optimisticfoodaddict.com/abstinentliving.

Thanks so much for your generous contribution to our community, Tracy!


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